The Cleveland Browns endured a lopsided loss in Todd Monken’s first game as head coach, and rather than talking about the roster’s inexperience, Monken chose to place the responsibility squarely on his own coaching staff. A 34-10 defeat to Jacksonville left plenty of areas to blame, but Monken’s message afterward made clear where he believes the real fix needs to start.
“We have work to do. Its not about the work, our guys work. Since I’ve been here, our guys have worked. All they’ve done is come everyday and give us everything they got. We have to coach better, scheme it better. We didn’t give ourselves a chance,” Monken said.
#Browns HC Todd Monken on the Browns 34-10 loss to the Jaguars:
"We have work to do. Its not about the work, our guys work. We have to coach better, scheme it better." pic.twitter.com/Q5ghIEgycR
— Ashly Holder (@AshNoelleTV) September 13, 2026
Jared Verse finished the opener without a single quarterback pressure and openly admitted afterward that self-inflicted issues up front hurt the pass rush, while Trevor Lawrence was under duress on only four of 24 dropbacks all game. Deshaun Watson, meanwhile, struggled to generate any rhythm before the outcome was already decided.
Players who hear their head coach absorb blame publicly, rather than pointing fingers after a blowout loss, tend to respond with more trust heading into the next matchup. Monken has already used similar language since Sunday, previously saying the young talent on this roster needs to be coached up rather than written off after one difficult afternoon.
Whether that message translates into results will be tested quickly. Cleveland travels to Tampa Bay next, and after a performance defined by miscommunication up front and a stagnant passing attack, Monken’s promise to coach and scheme better becomes the standard he will now be measured against.
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